Hartlepool United chairman Raj Singh's outburst on Stockport County manager and talks with ex-Sunderland and Leeds United duo

The Hartlepool chairman went on an incredible outburst when addressing supporters following news he will be putting the club up for sale as they stand on the brink of relegation back to the National League.

Singh was the target for supporters to vent their frustrations as Hartlepool lost against Crawley Town to all but confirm their Football League exit.

But after the club issued a statement revealing Singh will be actively looking to sell the club, Singh would, in a later interview, explain where he thinks things have gone wrong for Hartlepool to find themselves back in this position with the chairman referencing former manager Challinor’s exit from the club as the starting point.

Singh said: "For me the problems started the day after we got promoted. We had a manager in place who had no intention of staying and it was a case of ‘my stock is high, how do I get the best deal I can wherever I can?’

"Everybody knows the scenario that we were in at the time. It took three months to sort out the contract and I was hearing rumours that he was going behind our backs speaking to Tranmere and Wrexham.

"So the bottom line is he was never going to stay and that, for me, is where the problem started.

"There was no harmony behind the scenes. If people remember I never went on the coach that went around the town so the cracks were appearing behind the scenes then and we never really recovered from that.

"When nobody else came in [for him], contracts got signed and two months later he was gone again. We never really recovered from that.

"Even when we went up it was all about Dave Challinor this, Dave Challinor that, fist pumping. I kept my head down and got on with it,” Singh added.

"£750,000 we lost that year. Would Dave Challinor have got them up if I hadn’t have put the £750,000 in? It’s all water under the bridge now but I think you can see how upset and how hurt I am at the moment.”

Challinor would leave the club following a 5-0 defeat at Leyton Orient in October 2021 with the club sitting 10th in the League Two table, outside the play-off places on goal difference only after 15 games of their return to the Football League.

Challinor swapped his first role in the EFL to drop back down to the National League with Stockport County where he would enjoy immediate success in winning promotion back to League Two with the Hatters now in contention for consecutive promotions as they occupy a play-off spot in League Two.

Hartlepool and Singh would turn to former players Graeme Lee and Michael Nelson following Challinor’s exit, an appointment Singh has now declared as a mistake.

"When Graeme Lee came in, that was just a panic appointment at the time,” said Singh.

"The reason being, I can say it now, we offered the job to Gavin Strachan. Celtic offered him a better deal and he decided to stay.

"I think at that time it was five games we had lost and we had to get somebody in very, very quick.

"I think it was Port Vale away. On that weekend when I had a look at the team and everybody's body language we were really, really struggling. In hindsight that was a mistake.”

Lee was axed ahead of Hartlepool’s final game of the season against Colchester United despite the club being safe from relegation having narrowly missed out on a first ever Wembley appearance in the EFL Trophy.

Following a month of searching, Singh would appoint Lee’s successor in June with former Celtic midfielder Paul Hartley handed the job of moving Hartlepool onto the next level.

It was an appointment which would go horribly wrong as Hartley was sacked having won none of his opening nine games in charge this season before Keith Curle would replace him – Curle then being dismissed in February ahead of John Askey’s appointment.

But Singh has suggested Hartley was well down his list of targets in the summer with former Sunderland duo Jack Ross and Simon Grayson preferred.

"We interviewed Jack Ross, he was at the top of my list. He didn’t want to come to League Two. We made him an offer and got him around the table. I was excited we were going to get him but then he went to the Scottish Premier League,” explained Singh.

"Then the Paul Hartley situation – everybody knows what happened there.

"I’m getting slaughtered for the decisions that have been made but you do trust people around you to give you some guidance and you take their advice because you can’t do everything yourself.

"In hindsight that was a disaster show from start to finish, from day one to this moment.

"Even how negotiations were handled at the time. We interviewed Simon Grayson and Simon had two jobs lined up to go to India. Then the story got out, intentionally no doubt, that Paul Hartley had turned us down and he was going to stay at Cove. So because of that, Simon was thinking he wasn’t top of the list so he went to India.

"I wouldn’t have gone back to him [Hartley] but people around me thought what choice have we got? What’s our best option? We got round the table again and got him to the club. Again, in hindsight it was a mistake.”